156 LORD STAMFORD. MR. W. W. TAILBY. 



became a Derelict, which was picked up by me ; and with the 

 consent of the covert owners, land owners, and land occupiers, 

 was established as a distinct country, with no conditions what- 

 ever. Lord Stamford's letter states : — 



' When I took the hounds it was with the distinct under- 

 standing that I could hunt the whole Quorn country, viz : — the 

 part hunted by Mr. Tailby, at any time I wished, by, of course, 

 giving him proper notice. My only reason for not hunting it 

 was, that at the time it appeared the wish of the residents and 

 those hunting on that side that Mr. Tailby should have it, and 

 I had no wish to disturb him, having all Donnington country, as 

 well as the principal of the Quorn.' 



The inference to be drawn from this statement is, that at the 

 time when Lord Stamford came forward I had already taken 

 the Billesdon country, and it is evident he is labouring under 

 an error when he makes this assertion, as I did not come 

 forward to hunt that country until a considerable time after 

 Lord Stamford had declined to do so. My first advertised meet 

 was November 24th, 1856. 



Yours obediently, 



W. W. Tailby. 

 Skeffington Hall, Leicester, April i6th, 1878. 



No answer to Mr. Tailby's letter has been published in any 

 local, or (as far as v^^e are aware), in any other paper, and the 

 statements therein made can be abundantly confirmed. An intim- 

 ation was given by Lord Stamford in 1859, that he was prepared to 

 hunt the Billesdon side at the desire of the owners of coverts, etc., 

 but the proposal was at once declined. Letters objecting to the 

 proposal from the late Mr. Greene, of Rolleston, (an ex-master of 

 the Quorn,) in themselves w^e venture to assert are a proof of Lord 

 Stamford having severed the two countries for ever. 



49, Upper Baker Street, Regent's Park, 



London, February, 23rd, 1859. 



My Dear Tailby, — I was very much astonished at the in- 

 formation contained in your letter, which I received yesterday. 

 I cannot understand how Lord Stamford, after having refused 

 the most pressing requests to hunt the whole country, should 

 now {un-asked) ask for it. After you have gone to consider- 

 able expense and trouble, built kennels, got together a good 

 pack of hounds, and the whole thing giving satisfaction. I 



